I love going to Sushi bars and Japanese restaraunts because they always eem to have great green tea (and I liek the food). I'm trying to find a good Japanese style green tea from Adagio. I want something not to delicate with a bit of a grassy taste but not to much. So far the Sencha Overture is my favorite of what i tried. Haven't tried the premier but ti does seem a bit pricey so I';m not sure if I will.

Anybody have any recomendations? (note they dont have to be Japanese of course, I'm just used to that)

I'd say go with Gyokuro as its the finest green tea that the Japanese produce. Its fairly sweet and not as grassy as the Sencha that I've tried before, but I must mention that neither of those teas were from Adagio so I don't know how theirs compare. If you are not sure why not just buy a sample tin of each Japanese green tea Adagio sells and taste for yourself which one you like best.

i was really surprised with the quality of a japanese tea i found on the harney & sons website--it's cheaper than most good sencha, but i'm just as satisfied with it as with adagio's sencha overture. it's called "kagoshima" on harney & son's website.

I'd disagree. Gyokuro epitomizes Japanese green tea, but if you are not used to it, it can just taste like lukewarm tap water and you loose the calming teaishness. I'd start with Genmaicha, or if you like that, a non-covered sencha.

hmmmm so tastey. i like its unique popcorny flavor. i love teas with just unique identifiable flavors. i also like white monkey, though not as much as genmai cha. matter fact i think i will have some after i finish my cup of white monkey.

the genmai is not what you would get a japanese rest. BUT it has a great flavor that goes great with japanese foods.

I love an occasional cup of sencha... it's not the kind of tea I could drink ALL the time, but it is just right when you are in the mood for it... I mostly prefer chinese teas, so I haven't had many japanese... but of what I've tried I like sencha most, hojicha second... it's a nice bedtime tea.

that's interesting--i think i feel the same way about hojicha, at least as an evening tea. i find that i never get the mood for hojicha in the morning or afternoon. it's much more of a lazy, wind-down kind of green tea.

I have more than once heard the comment "sencha sucks" on this forum. Japanese greens are often misunderstood and underappreciated, mainly I believe do to unreliable sources of fresh first flush high quality leaf. Plus, it is produced by "steaming" vs. "frying" which creates a whole new taste in green tea completely different from Chinese. It is so rich and fragrant...

I have tried literally for years to find Japanese leaf of consistant quality. I would find one I like and reorder and be terribly disappointed by either stale sencha or sencha that was simply different and inferior from the previous order. But I knew if I kept trying and did not give up, I would find the right vendors for this sensational leaf.

Ok, I have digressed long enough...my favs (I refuse to pick just one fav) are fukumushi cha from Uji, a deep steamed sencha that is very full flavored. I have also been enjoying an everday sencha selection from Kagoshima. I have Gyokuru from Uji about every other day and love it.

Japanese tea in my experience does not get more flavorful with higher grades, but smoother. The more affordable ones can actually be more flavorful and if sourced properly, often more enjoyable. What is important is to be certain you are getting fresh, nitro flushed, ichiban (first flush) Japanese leaf from the most reputable sources. There is some good 2nd flush out there, but I prefer 1st flush.